I was very excited to win this on Goodreads! It is absolutely worth reading. As some other reviewers have noted, I was nervous about the lack of punctuation for dialogue, but after the first few pages I didn't even notice. In fact, it made me feel like I was in the narrator's head. I really came to care about the main character, a 13-year old Ojibwe boy who is seeking to redeem the brutal attack of his mother. His voice was so unique that I couldn't get this story off my mind for some time. A great read. I can't wait to read some of her other novels.
The characters were so petty I couldn't empathize with any of them. The writing was strong, but I don't feel like I got anything from this book and was just depressed by the end.
If you liked The Road by Cormac McCarthy you'll enjoy this. A completely different take on a post-apocalyptic world – more human.
I enjoyed this book, but cannot recommend it because I don't know who it would appeal to. There are parts that are jarring, others that are interesting, and quite few that are unbelievable. Although I would never say that a man can't write in a woman's voice (and vice versa), I don't think that he got it right here. There were so many times that I was just thinking, “a woman would never do that.” Quick read though and easy to get through.
This was a totally different book from the usual Mankell mysteries, but I enjoyed it. However, I was annoyed by how blase the narrator Louise became about the killings she witnessed and didn't even report them. She seemed only to be able to focus on her son's death and not really open her eyes. They leave you hanging in the end and I wonder if there will be a follow-up.
I would probably give us 3.5 stars, but I bumped it up. The first was a little slow going, but the second half really hooked me. He is always a solid writer, and loves his twists.
Full disclosure, I received a copy through the Goodreads giveaway.
This started out a little awkward for me and I wasn't sure I was going to get into this book. The first couple of chapters about Luz's life on the military base and her rambling, confused dialogue about the “quasis'” turned me off. I had to put it down for a little while, but then I came back to it and I'm glad I did. The story really started to pick up and I loved learning about the Okinawan history and the contrast to modern day. There were a few too many loose-ends that were too neatly tied up at the end for my taste, but still an intriguing story. Would definitely recommend this if you can get past the first 50 pages!
I wanted to like this book so much more. The people were so interesting and I'm glad their stories were being told, but I couldn't get past the way the author meandered along through the stories. She admits to not being a writer and it showed.
I can usually see a twist coming, but this totally caught me off-guard. I had to go back and reread whole sections to believe it. Really good.
I don't understand what all the fuss is about. I wonder if some of this book was lost in translation from Danish. There were a couple of points that I felt I was going to like this book, but then it would go off on a tangent about snow or simply stop with an uncompleted idea or thought. The ending was simply ridiculous.
The writing was superb, but the story got a little too crazy for me towards the end. A pleasure to read.
I can't believe that I never read this book in school. Great read – still as relevant today as it was 80 years ago!
I kept having to remind myself that this was NOT fiction. The writing was wonderful and the story compelling. I was inspired, angered, amazed and disgusted all at the same time. I wanted more.
A disappointing follow-up. Yet I still want to know what happens in book #3, so I'm hooked to some degree!
I hoped for more from this book, but I did enjoy it. Sometimes it felt simply like a recounting of things that happened and I couldn't get too interested or involved.
I did really like this, though it is very detailed and sometimes repetitive. Also lots of unanswered questions, but definitely interesting. Not like anything else I've read.